Summary

• Paris-based Gallium Defense has disclosed a €7.1 million seed round co-led by Keen Venture Partners and 360 Capital.
• Its GDS-10 radar uses an X-band electronically scanned array and is designed to detect small drones at distances of up to 10 kilometres.
• Outdoor trials are under way, with two planned configurations for military and civilian infrastructure operators and first orders targeted for early 2027.

Paris-based Gallium Defense has secured €7.1 million in seed funding to develop a lower-cost radar for detecting small drones, as European military organisations and critical infrastructure operators seek surveillance equipment that can be deployed across more locations.

The investment, disclosed on 2 November during European Defence Week in Paris, was co-led by Keen Venture Partners and 360 Capital, with participation from Omnes Capital and Polytechnique Ventures. The company is developing the GDS-10, an electronically scanned radar intended to identify small unmanned aircraft, including first-person-view drones, at distances of up to 10 kilometres.

Gallium is undertaking outdoor field trials and plans to open orders during the first quarter of 2027. Its initial product is being developed in two configurations, one for military customers and another for organisations protecting critical infrastructure such as airports, energy installations, ports, and industrial facilities.

Founded in April 2026 by Eric Fournier, Florian Lemoine, and Robin Mandel, the business is attempting to reduce the cost of radar coverage by combining commercially available electronic components with specialist radar engineering and software. Its development partners include companies working in France’s established microwave technology industry.

Small drones change surveillance requirements

Small unmanned aircraft present a different detection problem from conventional military aircraft. Their size, flight altitude, and radar characteristics can make them difficult to distinguish from background objects, particularly around buildings, industrial equipment, and varied terrain.

The widespread availability of relatively inexpensive drones has increased demand for systems capable of monitoring more locations. Military operators may need detection around vehicles, bases, or temporary installations, while civilian organisations must assess the risk of unauthorised aircraft entering sensitive airspace or approaching important facilities.

Traditional radar systems can provide extensive surveillance capability, but equipment designed for large defence programmes may be expensive to purchase, install, and maintain. Protecting a distributed network of sites can require several installations, particularly where buildings or geographical features create gaps in coverage.

Gallium’s approach centres on developing equipment that can be manufactured and deployed in greater numbers. The company is using commercial electronic components where its engineering requirements permit, drawing on supply chains developed for telecommunications, automotive systems, and computing rather than relying exclusively on specialised defence components.

Reducing component costs can improve the economics of production, although the completed system must still meet requirements for detection, reliability, environmental protection, and support. Manufacturing more units also introduces demands for consistent testing, calibration, and the availability of replacement components.

Radar built around software and electronics

The GDS-10 uses an X-band active electronically scanned array, or AESA, architecture. Electronically controlled antenna elements can steer radar beams without depending entirely on the mechanical movement used by some conventional radar designs.

The system is intended to provide coverage across 360 degrees horizontally and 90 degrees vertically, while tracking multiple airborne objects simultaneously. Gallium says it is developing the radar to recognise small drones, including first-person-view aircraft, and support integration with existing defence systems through standardised interfaces.

Its software-defined architecture uses embedded computing and is designed to accommodate AI-assisted detection and classification. Updating the software could allow the system to recognise changing drone characteristics or improve its interpretation of information gathered during operation.

Such flexibility depends on the quality of the underlying radar measurements and the effectiveness of the classification models. A software update cannot eliminate all physical limits imposed by the antenna, available processing capacity, weather conditions, or the radar characteristics of a target.

The claimed detection range of up to 10 kilometres is a design capability rather than a guarantee that every small drone can be detected at that distance. Actual performance will depend on target size, terrain, environmental conditions, and the configuration of the installation.

Similarly, the company’s stated ability to operate in adverse weather and electronically contested environments will require validation under representative conditions. Outdoor trials provide an opportunity to investigate those requirements and identify where changes are needed before production.

Detection is one part of drone protection

Identifying an aircraft does not automatically provide the means to stop it. A radar can supply information about the location and movement of an object, but operators must determine whether it represents a threat and what response is lawful and appropriate.

Military systems may connect radar information with other sensors and defensive equipment, while civilian organisations generally face restrictions on interference with aircraft. For infrastructure operators, surveillance may support early warnings, incident management, and coordination with the authorities responsible for responding to unauthorised flights.

Gallium is developing military and civilian versions of the same underlying platform to address these different requirements. Shared hardware may simplify production and maintenance, while the software and external interfaces can be adapted to the operational environment.

That design offers potential manufacturing advantages, although different customers may still require separate testing, integration work, and support arrangements. A system that performs successfully at a military test site may need additional engineering before it can be installed and operated reliably at an industrial facility.

Cybersecurity and software maintenance will also influence deployment decisions. A radar connected to other security systems must be protected against unauthorised access, while updates to classification software should be validated before they affect operational decisions.

From field trials to production

Gallium’s three founders bring experience from defence engineering and consulting organisations, including NATO, the French defence procurement agency DGA, Thales, and Boston Consulting Group. The company has worked with specialist radar engineers in the French Microwave Valley as it develops its initial prototype.

Its investment will support industrialisation, recruitment, further model development, and demonstrations for military and civilian customers. Gallium says it has progressed to open-air testing within months of its initial seed financing, providing opportunities to collect information about performance under varied conditions.

The company has also described an ambition to satisfy much of the operational requirement at a fraction of the cost of established radar systems. That is a commercial design objective, not an independently demonstrated comparison of completed installations.

The final cost of deploying a radar network will depend on equipment prices, installation, communications infrastructure, maintenance, training, and the number of units required to provide the intended coverage. Customers will need to compare those expenses with the performance delivered by alternative systems.

European demand for drone detection includes both established defence requirements and newer concerns about the protection of civilian infrastructure. Gallium is seeking a position in that market before achieving broad commercial deployment, and its funding provides resources for the engineering work needed to move from prototypes into repeatable production.

Orders are expected to open in early 2027, while field trials and customer demonstrations continue. Those trials will establish how the GDS-10 performs against the range of targets it is intended to identify and whether its manufacturing approach can deliver the lower deployment costs on which the company’s commercial strategy depends.